Greetings!

Happy 2021 to you and your family. Onward and upward!

The supply of westside detached homes in December was 440, down 17% from 529 in November and down 21% compared to 555 last year in December 2019. 
 
Westside detached home sales this December decreased 11% from November (81 vs 91) but were 40% higher than December 2019. Detached home sales are 13% higher than the December 10 year average of 72 sales.
Months of Supply, (MOS) in December is down 6.6% from last month to 5.4 from 5.8 in November and down 43% from December 2019. (A balanced market keeping prices relatively flat now appears to be 7 to 10 MOS). The December average price was up 8% from November to $3.763M and the median detached home price was down 3% to $2.92M. Current prices are down 17% on average & 24% on median from the peaks in Oct 2017 and Jul 2017. 

The highest sale price for a Westside detached home in December was $27M. It was on the market for 427 days before it sold. This was also the most expensive house sold on the Westside for 2020. The lowest price was $1.8M. It was on the market for 11 days. Of the 81 sales, 29 received the asking price or more and 52 sold below the asking price.
Westside apartment supply decreased 23% in December to 1359 from1763 in November but this is up 50% from the 909 listings we had in December 2019. At the same time, demand increased 16% to 364 sales v. 315 sales in November and this up 40% from 260 sales in December 2019. Apartment sales are up 45% from the 10 year average of 252 sales.

MOS in December decreased 33% to 3.7 from 5.6 in November but this is up 7% from 3.5 MOS in December 2019.
 
The average price in December increased 7% - $896 v $836K in November 2020 but was down 2.4% from Dec 2019. The median price was down 2% from November ($741 v $755) and is down 1% from last December. Average and median prices are still down by 25% & 16% from the peak of $1.199M and $880K in January 2018.
Westside townhouse supply decreased 18% in December from November (206 vs 250), and decreased 4% from 214 in December 2019. Demand in December is down 37% to 38 sales from 60 in November and that is relatively unchanged from last December 2019 (38 v 37). Attached home sales are up 16% from the 10 year average of 33 sales.
 
With supply and demand down, current MOS increased to 5.4 from 4.2 in November. That is down 6% from 5.8 in December 2019.
 
Townhouse average prices in December were down 3% from November ($1.392M v $1.44M) but were up 1.3% from $1.37M last December 2019. Median prices remained relatively unchanged ($1.312 v $1.303M) in November and are up 4% from December 2019. Average & median prices are still down 22% & 15% respectively from the peak of $1.8M & $1.519M in January 2018.
West side detached home listing supply in Dec. is down from the 10 year average by 19% for detached homes, but up 31% for apartments and 23% for townhomes.

Demand in Dec. was up from the 10 year average by 13% for detached homes, 45% for apartments but up 16% for townhomes.

Median home prices in Dec. are off from the peak, by 24% for Detached homes, 16% for Apartments and 15% for Attached Homes so all property types are still good value for Buyers. 

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in the region increased 53.4% to 3,093 this Dec. from 2,016 sales in Dec. 2019. This is a .9% increase from the 3,064 homes sold in Nov. 2020. 

Dec. 2020 sales were 57.7% above the 10-year Dec. sales average which is the highest on record in what is traditionally the quietest month of the year. This can in part be attributed to the Covid pandemic that created an unusual seasonal pattern in which the market demand collapsed in April and slowly recovered through Oct.

The total number of properties currently offered on the MLS® system in Metro Vancouver is 8,538 down .8% from 8,603 in Dec. 2019 and down 23.2% from 11,118 last month.

For all property types, the sales-to-active listings ratio for Dec. 2020 is 36.2%.
Downward pressure on home prices occurs when the ratio dips below the 12% mark for a sustained period, while upward pressure occurs when it surpasses 20% over several months.

There seems to be a high level of optimism in the market and many people will be listing their homes within the next month to take advantage of that. Currently the westside detached and attached homes are still undersupplied while the apartment market has more supply than usual. 

The typical, seasonal drop in demand due to buyers and sellers leaving for vacation is different this year as travel plans are curbed due to Covid. This is increasing pressure on the real estate supply and prices.

Buyers in the market today are frustrated by the lack of supply and sharply priced homes are receiving multiple offers and prices over their asking price. Short supply, low interest rates and steady demand will keep pressure on buyers but current prices are still well below the peak and are therefore good value. 

Be kind and be careful.

All the best for happy and healthy 2021! 🎉✨

Best regards,

Stuart